HMIME Chapter 34: The Urgent Need for Remedial Action

The bright red blood sprayed from the neatly severed neck of the eunuch, splattering all over Bai Lu. The mist of blood filled the air, the smell of blood permeating through, assaulting the senses.

The headless body futilely swayed for a few moments before collapsing to the ground. The eunuchs, never having witnessed such a scene, were terrified and scattered, abandoning their sticks as they fled in all directions.

Bai Lu finally managed to break free, struggling to stand up with his throbbing left arm, frowning as he looked at the newcomer.

Ling Feng seemed accustomed to this sight, his expression as cold and indifferent as ever. He stood amidst the pool of red liquid, his face devoid of emotion, the long knife in his hand still dripping blood, resembling a demon that had invaded the world.

Bai Lu leaned against the wall, watching him with suspicion and uncertainty.

Ling Feng sheathed his knife and walked over to Bai Lu, directly grabbing his left arm and pressing on the joint with his fingers.

“Agh…” Bai Lu sucked in a breath, unable to help but struggle.

Ling Feng released him, expressionless. “The bone is broken.”

“I’m well aware,” Bai Lu retorted.

“You shouldn’t have gone out on your own,” Ling Feng’s gaze carried a hint of reproach. “I am your guard, why did you avoid me?”

Bai Lu felt inexplicably guilty, like a husband caught in bed with his mistress by his wife. He awkwardly avoided eye contact, not daring to speak.

Ling Feng didn’t want to waste any more words with him, turning to glance at Mei Fei.

Mei Fei was frightened by his stern gaze, despite being just a guard, her position as a noble consort made her speechless with fear.

After a long while, Mei Fei finally mustered the courage to speak, “This man was hiding poison. I only intended to interrogate him, but he resisted and injured others. I had no choice but to…”

Ling Feng interrupted her, “He belongs to His Majesty. Whatever his crime, it is for His Majesty to judge. You overstepped your bounds.”

Mei Fei was taken aback, her face draining of color.

Ling Feng didn’t want to say more, turning to take Bai Lu back to the Qingya Palace. He instructed a maid to fetch a physician and sent his subordinate to the prince’s mansion to report the incident to His Majesty.

Chu Ya hastily returned from outside, not even entering the gates of the White Deer Palace before hearing Bai Lu’s string of curses, “Damn it! Ouch! Be gentle, are you trying to break it again? Fractures don’t heal like this, listen to me, you need to do this, and then this…”

Chu Ya entered the main hall to see Bai Lu sitting on the beauty couch against the wall, half undressed, revealing his slender and toned upper body. Beside him, an old physician was manipulating his arm, seemingly resetting the bone.

Ling Feng stood by with his long knife, his gaze heavy, his complexion not looking well.

Although Bai Lu was injured, his mouth was not idle. Perhaps due to frequent injuries in the past, he had become quite knowledgeable about medical matters. He couldn’t help but chime in beside the old physician, even seeming eager to give instructions himself.

It seemed like the doctor-patient relationship was quite tense, but the old physician, hindered by Bai Lu’s current status as a favorite, and confident in his age and experience, ignored his babbling and focused on manipulating the bone, then suddenly exerted force, pushing it back into place.

Crack!

Bai Lu exclaimed, “Huh?”

He waved his arm and clenched his fist, astonished. “It’s fixed?”

The old physician revealed a hidden smile and smoothed his white beard. “Young master’s bone wasn’t broken, just dislocated. With a push and a pull, I reset the bone. Rest for a few days and it will heal.”

“Amazing…” Bai Lu looked at his arm in amazement. “Your skills are incredible. If only I had such expertise, I wouldn’t have to keep going to the hospital.”

The old physician was pleased with the praise, then took Bai Lu’s arm again, shaking his head as he sighed, “But this bruise might be troublesome. I’ll give you some medicinal oil later. Apply it three times a day and massage it to disperse the blood clots. It might be a bit painful, but endure it.”

Bai Lu nodded, “It’s fine, I can bear it.”

The old physician muttered to himself, “Wasn’t it you who screamed like a pig when I was resetting your bone?”

Bai Lu turned his head and looked behind him, “Is my back bruised too? I can’t reach that area.”

Chu Ya approached and saw a prominent bruise on Bai Lu’s fair and slender back, accompanied by some blood, indicating a serious injury.

Bai Lu often came down from the ring with such scars, and he never seemed to care. Each time, Chu Ya felt both heartache and anger. He had spoken many words of advice to persuade him not to compete anymore, and had even employed some sneaky tactics behind the scenes, finally managing to keep him away from the ring temporarily.

He thought he could finally rest easy after that, but unexpectedly, today, under his protection, he was injured again.

His neck, cervical spine, back, and spine, all struck at vital points. If the force had been any stronger, would it have endangered his life? Did he have to let him suffer again?

As Chu Ya pondered these thoughts, his eyes involuntarily filled with cold and murderous intent, as chilling as the frozen snowfield.

Bai Lu, sensitive to his gaze, glanced at him and remarked, “What’s wrong? Your eyes look so scary.”

“Nothing.” Chu Ya lowered his eyelids, concealing the dark emotions churning inside him. He sat beside Bai Lu, first kissing his face as if to comfort him, then carefully examining his injury. “How is it? Does it still hurt badly?”

“It’s okay, much better than before,” Bai Lu touched his arm. “As long as there are no lasting effects, I still want to live a few more years with this body.”

Chu Ya smiled and brushed the stray strands of hair from Bai Lu’s face, gently inspecting his features, half-seriously, half-jokingly saying, “Your brain isn’t functioning well, so you need to take care of your body.”

Bai Lu stared at him strangely, hitting the nail on the head with a question, “Are you joking to lighten the mood, or are you speaking from the heart? If it’s the latter, can I punch you for being honest?”

Chu Ya: “…”

He skillfully changed the subject, “So, the person who came to report earlier only told me that you had a conflict with Mei Fei. What exactly happened?”

Bai Lu was about to explain when Eunuch Wang hurriedly walked in, whispering, “Your Majesty, Noble Consort Mei Fei requests an audience.”

She came to see Chu Ya at this critical moment, for only two reasons:

One, if she didn’t come, she wouldn’t have a say.

Bai Lu could easily say anything in front of His Majesty, tarnishing her reputation without a chance to defend herself.

Two, perhaps she wanted to accuse him first, framing the assassin’s crime on Bai Lu.

In any case, it was a race to speak first, whoever spoke the first word in front of His Majesty would have a greater chance of winning.

Bai Lu put on his clothes and said, “I won’t say anything, someone’s here to tell you.”

Chu Ya sighed helplessly, saying to Eunuch Wang, “Let her in, and have everyone else leave.”

Soon, Mei Fei was brought in, supported by Peach, and as soon as she entered the main hall, she pushed Peach aside, kneeling down in front of Chu Ya, her shoulders trembling, tears streaming down her cheeks as she cried.

“Your Majesty… I’m guilty, I know I was wrong, please forgive me…”

Her hair was disheveled, half covering her pale face, her eyes red, tears shimmering, truly living up to the name of a tearful beauty, much better than the stars in TV dramas.

Bai Lu sat cross-legged on the couch, picking up a plate of crispy lotus pastries from the nearby table, watching the scene while munching on them.

Chu Ya, struggling to tear his gaze away from Bai Lu’s unexpectedly adorable eating habits, cleared his throat and asked, “What crime have you committed?”

Mei Fei whimpered pitifully, “Your Majesty, I shouldn’t have acted without authorization. I was just too anxious. It’s just that Bai Lu brought poison into the palace and concealed it without reporting, so I mistakenly thought he was an assassin…”

Bai Lu stuffed the lotus pastry into his mouth: crunch, crunch.

Mei Fei’s temple throbbed, barely holding back her act, “Your Majesty, I was also worried about your safety and couldn’t help but be anxious. I went to ask Bai Lu about it, but unexpectedly a conflict arose. I, a weak woman, couldn’t control the situation and it turned out like this…”

Bai Lu: crunch, crunch.

Chu Ya took away his plate of pastries, “Stop eating for now. What about this poison she mentioned?”

Bai Lu licked the crumbs off his fingertips, completely devoid of the self-awareness of a criminal suspect, enjoying the spectacle and seemingly unafraid, as if he could wash himself clean deliberately stirring up trouble, “Oh, the poison? I almost forgot until you mentioned it. Actually, I am an assassin.”

Mei Fei widened her eyes in shock, not expecting Bai Lu to admit it so readily.

Bai Lu might have been touched by Mei Fei’s acting skills and wanted to play along, continuing to fabricate, “In fact, as an assassin trained since childhood, entering the palace is to assassinate the emperor. Oh, do you know that famous Qin Ke? He’s my master.”

Chu Ya cautiously asked, “A-Bai, are you saying… Jing Ke?”

Bai Lu, feeling embarrassed for his lack of education, blushed, pretending to be tough, “Yes, I meant Jing Ke.”

Mei Fei couldn’t understand what they were talking about, but she understood that Bai Lu had admitted to being an assassin, the evidence was solid. She couldn’t help but interject, “Your Majesty, I dare to be bold, but he is an assassin. If he stays in the palace any longer, it may be dangerous. How do you plan to deal with him?”

“He’s not an assassin,” Chu Ya saw through Bai Lu’s lies in one sentence. “He’s just talking nonsense.”

Bai Lu shot him a glare but remained silent.

Chu Ya looked at Mei Fei again, “Furthermore, the harem cannot interfere in politics. You’ve overstepped your bounds. Go back and reflect for seven days.”

Mei Fei was taken aback, her eyes immediately filled with joy, provocatively glancing at Bai Lu. See that? Even if I injured you, so what? His Majesty still leans towards me.

Bai Lu said, “Is that all?”

He had endured three beatings, even if he didn’t want to argue with women, but being confined for seven days, what was the difference from no punishment at all? At least he should be demoted from consort, or stripped of his title! Last time he was just climbing a wall and got beaten! His butt hurt for three days!

Bai Lu felt very dissatisfied, simply stopped caring, and lay down on the couch, closing his eyes to sleep.

Just as he closed his eyes, he heard footsteps outside. Bai Lu opened his eyes to see a petite figure rushing in like the wind, grabbing Mei Fei’s hair, forcibly pulling her up from the ground, and then slapping her hard.

“How dare you touch my son?! You’ve had enough of living, you wretch!!”